South Africa

Location	Southern Africa, at the southern tip of the continent of Africa.
Area	total: 1,219,090 sq km land: 1,214,470 sq km water: 4,620 sq km
Natural Resources	Gold, chromium, antimony, coal, iron ore, manganese, nickel, phosphates, tin, uranium, gem diamonds, platinum, copper, vanadium, salt, natural gas

Nationality	noun: South African(s) adjective: South African
Religions	Zion Christian 11.1%, Pentecostal/Charismatic 8.2%, Catholic 7.1%, Methodist 6.8%, Dutch Reformed 6.7%, Anglican 3.8%, Muslim 1.5%, other Christian 36%, other 2.3%, unspecified 1.4%, none 15.1% (2001 census)
Languages	IsiZulu 23.8%, IsiXhosa 17.6%, Afrikaans 13.3%, Sepedi 9.4%, English 8.2%, Setswana 8.2%, Sesotho 7.9%, Xitsonga 4.4%, other 7.2% (2001 census)
Country name	conventional long form: Republic of South Africa conventional short form: South Africa former: Union of South Africa abbreviation: RSA
Government type	Republic
Capital	name: Pretoria (administrative capital) geographic coordinates: 25 42 S, 28 13 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) note: Cape Town (legislative capital); Bloemfontein (judicial capital)
Administrative divisions	9 provinces; Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, Northern Cape, North-West, Western Cape
Independence	31 May 1910 (Union of South Africa formed from four British colonies: Cape Colony, Natal, Transvaal, and Orange Free State); 31 May 1961 (republic declared) 27 April 1994 (majority rule)
Legal system	based on Roman-Dutch law and English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

GDP (purchasing power parity)	$595.7 billion (2013 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate)	$353.9 billion (2013 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	2% (2013 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP)	$11,500 (2013 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 2.6% industry: 29% services: 68.4% (2013 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 9% industry: 26% services: 65% (2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	31.3% (2009 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	5.8% (2013 est.)
Agriculture - products	Corn, wheat, sugarcane, fruits, vegetables; beef, poultry, mutton, wool, dairy products
Industries	Mining (world's largest producer of platinum, gold, chromium), automobile assembly, metalworking, machinery, textiles, iron and steel, chemicals, fertilizer, foodstuffs, commercial ship repair
Industrial production growth rate	0.9% (2013 est.)
Exports - commodities	Gold, diamonds, platinum, other metals and minerals, machinery and equipment
Currency (code)	Rand (ZAR)
Fiscal year

Population	48,375,645 (July 2014 est.)
Age structure	0-14 years: 28.3% (male 6,859,518/female 6,815,185) 15-24 years: 20.2% (male 4,914,394/female 4,866,121) 25-54 years: 38.2% (male 9,543,746/female 8,923,605) 55-64 years: 6.3% (male 1,470,282/female 1,950,499) 65 years and over: 6.1% (male 1,205,657/female 1,826,638) (2014 est.)
Population growth rate	-0.48% (2014 est.)
Birth rate	18.94 births/1,000 population (2014 est.)
Death rate	17.49 deaths/1,000 population (2014 est.)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female 0-14 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-24 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 25-54 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 55-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2014 est.)
Infant mortality rate	total: 41.61 deaths/1,000 live births male: 45.25 deaths/1,000 live births female: 37.9 deaths/1,000 live births (2014 est.)
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 49.56 years male: 50.52 years female: 48.58 years (2014 est.)
Total fertility rate	2.23 children born/woman (2014 est.)
Current contraceptive use among married women 15-49 years old(any method)	60% (2007-2012)
Unmet need of contraceptive	13.8% (2008)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS	6,070,800 (2012)
HIV/AIDS - deaths	235,100 (2012)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 93% male: 93.9% female: 92.2% (2011 est.)